VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

President Joko Widodo will announce the mechanism for the COVID-19 booster vaccine program, which is planned to kick off on Wednesday (January 12, 2021), Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin has said.

"President (Joko Widodo) will announce about the booster vaccine specifically through a press conference," he said on Monday.

The program for administering the third or booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine will commence on January 12, 2022, he informed. There will be free vaccines for certain groups as well as paid vaccines, he said.

Elderly citizens and Social Security Health Contribution Assistance Recipients (PBI) will receive free vaccines, the minister said.

As per the eligibility criteria, the booster vaccines will be provided to residents who are aged 18 years and above, have received the second dose at least 6 months six months ago, live in a district or city with at least 70-percent first dose coverage and 60-percent second dose coverage he informed.

The minister said that the President will also clarify the types of vaccines that will be used for the booster vaccine program.

Indonesia is currently ranked fourth globally in terms of vaccinations, he noted.

"There are 169 million Indonesians who have been vaccinated with the first dose, surpassing Brazil's (vaccination coverage, which is pegged at) 166 million people. We are now behind China at 1.2 billion, India at 882 million, and the United States at 280 million," Sadikin said.

As of Monday, 170 million doses of the first vaccine and 116 million doses of the second vaccine have been administered to Indonesian citizens, he added.

However, five provinces have not reached the 70-percent vaccination target for the first dose: West Sumatra, West Sulawesi, Maluku, West Papua, and Papua.

"There is a stock of 446 million vaccines. (Of the total,) 280 million have been administered, (and) there are still more than 150 million doses which can be provided," he stated.

Earlier, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, said that several vaccines have received emergency-use authorization from the National Agency of Drug and Food Control, including Sinovac or Coronavac, Moderna, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and Zifivax. (Antaranews)